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By Correspondent in Abuja.
Mr I.I. Okim, lawyer for Dantata & Sawoe Construction Company Limited, has confirmed that the company has fully paid the $1.4 million owed to Zutari Consulting Nigeria Ltd for subcontract work on the Dangote Fertilizer Plant project in Lekki, Lagos.
Okim disclosed this in a motion on notice filed before Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court in Abuja on behalf of Dantata & Sawoe.
The motion was filed after Justice Umar had, on Wednesday, appointed a liquidator for the company due to its failure to pay the debt.
The judge, acting on Zutari Consulting’s request, noted that Dantata & Sawoe had been given multiple opportunities to settle the debt but had repeatedly offered excuses. In the motion filed on December 4, the company stated that the debt had now been fully settled in an effort to avoid liquidation.
This development follows months after the court approved the publication of a winding-up petition in two national dailies. Zutari Consulting, an engineering design and consultancy firm, had provided subcontract services to Dantata & Sawoe, a construction company with over three decades of experience in general contracting.
Okim argued that the company has now paid the arbitral award in full and requested the court to stay or discharge the liquidation orders issued on December 3, 2025, pending the outcome of an appeal. He further stated that continued execution of the orders could create an irreversible situation. The company also undertook to provide security for costs.
John Dalam, Head of Litigation and Insurance at Dantata & Sawoe, attached debit alerts showing payments to Zutari Consulting as evidence of full settlement. He warned that further enforcement of the liquidation order could cause irreparable harm to the company.
Our Correspondent recalls that the $1.4 million debt arose from a settlement agreement addressing an alleged $1,257,592.83 owed to Zutari Consulting for subcontract work completed in 2015 at the Dangote Fertilizer Plant project.
After failing to resolve the dispute amicably, the matter was referred to the International Chamber of Commerce in London, which issued a final arbitral award in favor of Zutari Consulting on April 7, 2021.
At the court proceedings, Justice Umar highlighted that the case had been adjourned multiple times to allow Dantata & Sawoe to pay the debt. Citing the company’s continued delays, he appointed Joseph Abiolu, FCA, as liquidator under Sections 571(d), 572, and 573(1)(b) of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 2020. The matter has been adjourned to February 18, 2026, for the liquidator’s report.
Edited by Dada Ahmed.
